Health Insurance on Big Island (Honolulu, Hilo: hotel, live, centers)
Big IslandThe Island of Hawaii
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I have Medicare as Primary and BCBS FEDVIP as Secondary.
When patients are referred to Honolulu for medical care, does anyone know if any of the insurance plans with Kaiser, Blue Cross, or HMSA cover travel expenses? We plan to move back to Hilo this year and can choose any of these insurances as I am a retired Federal employee.
Back in 2000, we had Kaiser insurance and they paid for my husband’s trip to Honolulu for surgery.
Blue Cross and HMSA are very similar in that they use each other's networks but they aren't the same thing. The care they deliver is very similar but the financials are very different. As far as I know BCBS won't pay for interisland trips but HSMA will. Here is their web page about it:
There is no other Blue Cross/Blue Shield in Hawaii.
I agree with Terracore. The two plans are similar but they are not the same.
I really don’t get what you’re saying. When I worked for USDA in Hilo, I provided the different insurance brochures to the employees. My supervisor had a Blue Cross insurance card and plan; I had Kaiser; and the two women who worked in accounting had HMSA plans.
I’m going to do more research on the OPM Fed Gov website. I just didn’t want to read through the brochure details, so I thought I’d ask. When I find out more about the plans, I’ll get back to you and Terracore.
Mahalo to both of you for taking the time to respond.
Hawaii's medical and insurance companies are separate companies from their mainland same-named companies. The Kaiser in Hawaii is not the same Kaiser as on the mainland, etc., etc. Hawaii Medicaid, being Federal, should be the same as the mainland version, although I don't know that for certain.
We've only experienced traveling to Oahu with Kaiser and they not only pay for it, but have it set up pretty to be pretty easy. There's a shuttle bus from the airport to the Kaiser facility and another shuttle bus back. They will fly a companion over if it's a procedure that may need travel assistance afterwards. The Kaiser facility on Oahu somehow has more of a hotel feel to it than a hospital, although there's not any separate rooms for the companions if there's an overnight stay.
whtviper1 you seem entrenched in proving everybody but yourself wrong- Have you had both HSMA and BCBS in Hawaii? I have. And more than that, I've had both at the same time. They ARE NOT THE SAME. Non HMO plans use each other's networks all the time. This is not a new thing.
In what sense - Kaiser corporate in the Bay Area is certainly funding all the annual losses Kaiser in Hawaii is incurring.
And when you go to the parent Kaiser Permanente website and look for locations - Hawaii is listed with all the other ones
Hmm, maybe they've changed, then. Back in '04 or so, the Portland Kaiser didn't share records with the Hawaii Kaiser and they billed separately, too. But, that was then, maybe they've manged to get it more organized now.
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